Inheritance

Chapter 8, Home Improvement

I hadn't even gone for a swim since moving here, and even though it was night, the moonlight only further energized me, it beckoned me. I closed up the house with Luna safe inside, and dove off the end of the dock, into the dark water, still warm from a day of sunshine. I just stared at the moon, which shone in bright streaks across the water's surface, and hummed along to nature. Fireflies swirled around the edges of the lake, amidst the tall reeds, sparkling like pixies. I remembered the lakeside barbecues that went well into the evening, when Ivy, Amber, and I would pretend the fireflies were fairies, and so were we.

Hours later, I emerged from the lake, feeling blissfully fatigued. Striding into the master bedroom with Luna trailing in behind me, I saw the canvas I had left on the bed. Again, my grandfather's large painting was of a wolf. What the hell kind of paint looks like regular oil, but has the ability to appear differently at night? It was too much thinking for 2 a.m. and quite frankly the red-eyed wolf creeped me out a little, and reminded me of the wolf that scratched me. I took the painting and put it back in the closet where It originally had been. Maybe it creeped my grandpa out too? I wondered while now taking Luna into my arms and placing her in bed beside me and pulling the covers up around us.

...

What was that knocking? I half-thought, groggily. My eyes fluttered open to see the bright morning sunshine. Luna reacted to the sound by growling, first a low, gargled sound, then a series of rapid-fire yips escaped her throat. I sat up, realizing Dakota must be here. I hadn't even gotten dressed. I peeked from the bedroom window into the courtyard, and saw Dakota standing there. Oh God! I pulled up the screechy window-pane and shouted,

"I overslept-- I'm sorry! I'll be down in a minute."

Hurriedly, I pulled on a pair of jean shorts, a bandeau, and slipped my feet into some sneakers. I looked at the scratches on my arm which were red and raised from being irritated. I quickly dabbed on some of the scar cream and slipped a very thin flannel over it all, which I knotted in the front. Given more time, I would have used a little concealer under my eyes and maybe some mascara so my naturally reddish brown eyelashes would be darker and defined... and I would have probably brushed out my hair. But, there was no time, so I quickly got down the stairs while pulling my hair into a messy high ponytail. As I opened the door and met eyes with Dakota, my little insecurities melted away and I forgot them completely.

"Hey, thanks for coming! Sorry about that."

He walked into the house and said, looking around excitedly and rubbing his hands together

"No worries. So boss, what needs to be done?"

I gave him a grocery list of big tasks, and we both set to work on different areas of the house.

While listening to a beat-up old radio I'd found in my Grandpa's pantry, Dakota hammered new shutters to the windows, and I started to paint the house white like it had once been. I asked

"You knew my grandpa pretty well?"

He nodded, glancing over at me before focusing on holding the next nail straight against the shutter

"We'd kind of check up on each other now and again, but Ezekiel was kind of a recluse. He liked his time alone-- needed it, in fact."
I was surprised to hear this, given that when my family stayed with him, he had buddies and family members galore. His only problem seemed to be having too many friends to talk to at get-togethers and not enough time. I said, half-kidding.

"Hmm. You sure we're talking about the same person?"

He nodded

"Yeah. He changed a lot after the falling out with your dad. Everyone says so."

I got quiet... realizing the falling out happened mostly because of me. When I got attacked by that wolf, or dog, or whatever it was, It sparked a rage within my dad I didn't yet know he had, and an equal rage within my grandfather. If somehow, I hadn't been scratched, Grandpa Ezekiel probably wouldn't have become such a recluse, and cousin Ivy would still like me... I asked

"So he hid out in his house most of the time?"

I almost couldn't believe that, because the house looked like it hadn't been lived in, or even touched, since I'd last visited. The dust was like a gray blanket of snow, all over everything. The car had deteriorated, and the house's doors and windows hardly opened. How could someone live there?

Dakota answered

"He didn't. I mean, at first he stayed in the house and didn't want anything to do with anyone. But about 12 or 13 years ago he just left. He camped a lot after that, always in the area, and always on foot."

I found myself whispering
"Wow."

Just imagining how alone he must have felt. I asked one last question

"And, Ivy and Amber? Didn't he raise them?"

Dakota looked over at me, surprised that I didn't know, and clarified

"The girls were raised by an aunt-- on their father's side."

Had my father known how bad it had gotten for grandpa? I finished painting that side, and left to go clean the dusty dishes in the cabinets.

...

The next few days were spent working on various tasks. Dakota had fixed the broken windows, greased the door hinges, and at present, was fixing floorboards in the master bedroom

I sprayed a cloudy mirror in the master bath and wiped it clean with a rag. As the mirror became clear, I saw that behind myself, Dakota was passing by with a cracked floorboard and some wood-glue. He was looking at my face in the reflection and gave a silly grin. I blushed and spun around toward him. He turned and kept working again.

After a lunch break, Dakota taught me how to work on the floorboards without the glue showing. I worked on a different area and gradually stopped asking him if I was doing it right.

A few papers on the desk by the window blew off and onto the floor. I began to pick up some of them, sprawled about, and then I heard laughing, and turned toward Dakota, asking

"What's so funny?"

He asked with playful curiosity,

"Who's this?"

I bent down to snatch the headshot of Danny before Dakota could get his hands on it

"I answered

"No one."
He continued pestering me about it

"Oh really? Well this no one even signed it for you."

I sucked in a breath for support,

"He was a guy back in San Diego. I ended things before moving up here."

His brow furrowed and he now looked guilty for teasing me

"Oh shoot, I'm sorry. I just thought he was from some boyband or something."
I looked over at him laughing, and looking at the headshot again
"You're so right! Wow, that's so funny. I ended it because he cared more about his social media image than real life. And looking back, my relationship with him-- or whatever it was always felt insincere..."
I crumpled the headshot and tossed it in the nearby bin, wondering why I even took it with me when I moved. Dakota said

"Well then I'm glad Danny's far far away right now, probably taking a selfie right now."

I laughed
"Oh, always with the selfies!"

...

That night, as Dakota was packing his car and preparing to leave, he pulled a red checkered picnic blanket out of his truck bed and asked me

"Would you like to have a picnic on the dock? I have beer and a bucket of wild-berries back here."

"Sure! Let me see if I have anything to contribute to our picnic. I'll meet you out there!"

In that moment, nothing seemed more appealing than sitting beside Dakota watching the sunset. I also wasn't sure if this was a date or not. I got nervous on dates, so I went in with the mindset that this was just two people continuing to get to know each other... but I am undoubtedly attracted to him... I thought to myself.